On this day 54 years ago, the track team bested the Hofstra College freshman squad by a 70.5 to 46.5 margin. Hofstra would become a university two years later.

Despite the high winds at Hofstra, the Blue and White had a number of standout performances. Greg Wedel broke the school record in the javelin by ten feet, a mark that was also topped by teammate Cal Butler. Wedel also took first in the 220 yard low hurdles. Jim Scarlata and Bill Johnson were also double winners, as Scarlata took honors in the 100 and 220 yard dashes and Johnson claimed the shot put and the discus.

Other individual winners on the day included Ted Redington (mile), John Lyon (high jump), and Jeff Alexander and Bob Wanamaker who tied for first in the pole vault. The 4×440 relay team of Scarlata, Redington, Neil Scott, and Ron Greeley won as well, thanks in part to Greeley’s 52-second anchor leg.

The 1961 squad would go on to claim the Ivy League Championship, the sixth in a string of twelve consecutive crowns.

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